Pilar Gonzales, philanthropic adviser and consultant (Oakland, Calif.)

How much she makes: Expects to earn between $25,000 and $45,000 this year. How much she gives: Around 25 percent of her income, though it varies from year to year.

Why she gives: Growing up in rural Michigan, Ms. Gonzales, 56, didn’t have much. But her grandparents, who were migrant farm workers, taught her to share the fruits and vegetables she grew. She felt empowered: “That gave me a sense of having resources and an idea about money and an idea of how to live in the world not as a poor person, although a lot of people might see me that way.”

Where she gives: Today, Ms. Gonzales supports social-justice groups, disaster-relief organizations, and other charities, as well as individuals who are in need; her largest gift, she says, was for $20,000. Ms. Gonzales says she sometimes hears from people who think she’s crazy for not keeping more of her money but that she is happy with her decisions. “I came from modest means,” she says, “and I’m hanging in there in the middle class.”